Design informed by strategic insight

Our process starts with listening.

An effective design strategy should serve as an expression of your business goals. To better understand your business, market, and goals behind your new project, we begin any new project with our Pilot process. This is an immersive process that allows us to craft a strategy that articulates where you’re going, how to get there, and what it will take.

Concluding the Pilot phase, we will have a mutually agreed upon roadmap that will help guide the rest of the project to a successful outcome.

Phase 1: Pilot

Pilots uncover insights about the timeline, requirements, or goals that help define a successful outcome for the project. Developing a deep understanding of your business and unique goals allows us to make truly informed recommendations on a go-forward strategy. At the end of the Pilot, you will have a comprehsensive document that gives you everything you need to get the project started including further research, core strategic insights, development strategy, milestones, deliverables, budget, and any other domains that are important to the success of the project.

Phase 2: Information Architecture

The Information Architecture phase is where we begin creating a “blueprint" of the website or product, allowing us to focus on the general structure without color, photos, or refined typography. We develop a visual site map or user flows that map out required pages and specific functional requirements. This phase culminates in the creation of wireframes for key pages that defines the content requirements, hierarchy, and functionality.

Phase 3: Design

Once wireframes are approved, we begin translating them into fully realized designs. We start by designing key views as static compositions, establishing a look and feel to best represent the project goals and brand voice. Once the direction is approved, the design will be expanded to secondary views and other device sizes.

Phase 4: Development

Once design has been approved, we begin to implement our development strategy defined in the Pilot Phase. This generally includes translating the approved designs into code using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, including any animations or interactive elements. If its a website project, this is when we tie in our front-end code to the content management system of choice. This phase may also include asset production, content entry, search engine optimization, testing, deployment, and training.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you decide which projects to take on?

We take on projects where we feel like we can really make an impact on a client’s business. We generally don’t take on projects where we can only be involved in one piece of the process like design or development – we feel that we provide maximum value where we can take a project from start to finish, involved in everything from design strategy to implementation.

We need more than just a single website or app project.
Do you offer any retainer services?

Yes. We understand that the needs of a growing company aren’t always clear-cut or predictable. We serve as a design team for startups and businesses, offering a flexible solution to answer to those ever-evolving needs.

Why don’t you do project estimates up front?

In our experience, the best results are achieved by first understanding the true goals and roots of the project – no two projects are the same. That’s why all of our engagements start with a short Piloting phase where we work with you to articulate the project goals, success metrics, and project requirements.

This helps us build a plan for where you need to go, how to get there, how long it will take, how much it will cost, and what challenges you could face along the way. This ensures that the budget and timeline makes sense for both parties, expectations are aligned, and that the project has a realistic roadmap to success.

What kind of businesses do you work with?

Our clients range from the startup to enterprise level in a variety of industries including sports science, active sports, financial technology, educational technology, and aerospace to name a few. We partner with institutions and nonprofits as well. Generally, the industry is less important than the culture, people, and goals of the partners we choose to work with.

Is Rubric right for us?

If you’re looking for a partner to make great work with and help get the most out of your website or product, then yes. If you’re looking for the cheapest or fastest option and don’t care how it gets done, then we would not be a good fit. Our clients hire us for our expertise and track record in producing successful digital projects.

Do you work with nonprofits?

Yes. However, our approach remains the same – to create a course of action that produces real results. We still take the same planning-based approach to define what will make the project successful and what it will take to get there. To learn more about how we work with nonprofits, please get in touch.